SCJ featured in Green Bay paper
After serving a four-parish cluster in the Diocese of Green Bay since 2010, Fr. Pat Lloyd retired on June 14.
“He will be missed,” Deb Brandt, pastoral minister, said in an article recently published in the Green Bay Compass. “He has taught us and shepherded us well through the years and is a very compassionate and caring individual.”
Fr. Pat served what is known as the “Four Parish Catholic Family,” made up of St. Anthony, Tigerton, St. Mary, Marion, Holy Family-St. William, Wittenberg, and St. Mary, Leopolis (about an hour northwest of Green Bay). He began ministry with the cluster just as the parishes were emerging from their reorganization. The parishes have a joint office and educational programs but each also continues to operate independently.
“It was difficult to recruit a priest because of the stress of operating four parishes,” Brandt said in the Compass article. “Fr. Pat saw that we had a need and thought that he could help.”
Click here to read the full article on the Compass website.
Fr. Pat is now a member of the Sacred Heart Community in Pinellas Park , Fl.
Election assembly updates
The US Province Election Assembly begins at 1 pm on Monday, August 24. It is expected to conclude by midday on Friday, August 28. Fr. John van den Hengel of the Canadian Region will be the moderator.
A packet was mailed (USPS) to members of the province last week which contains: 1) a prayer for elections, 2) the approved bylaws for the assembly, 3) lists of eligible candidates for provincial superior and provincial councilor, and 4) a tentative daily schedule. Please note the word “tentative” in regards to the schedule; it will be fleshed out further during a planning meeting later this month.
IF YOU NEED A PROXY VOTE you must make your request, in writing (by letter, fax or email), to Fr. Ed Kilianski, by JULY 31. Fr. Ed’s email as interim provincial superior is provsup@usprovince.org and his address is: Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2405 Navigation Blvd., Houston, TX 77003. Rules regarding proxy votes can by found starting on page 6 of the bylaws.
In preparation for the Election Assembly members are asked to review the Synthesis Statement from the 2014 Provincial Chapter and the Final Message from the 2015 General Chapter. The documents are available from the following links:
2014 US Provincial Chapter Synthesis
Final Message of the XXIII General Chapter
Finally, don’t forget to make lodging arrangements if you are coming to the assembly from outside of Milwaukee.
Necessary paperwork
Unfortunately much of life involves paperwork. Br. Frank Presto, provincial secretary, asks members of the US Province to “Please remember to return your signed forms for background checks. There are two forms; both must be signed and dated. The forms should be returned to the provincial secretary [Br. Frank] as soon as possible.”
If you have questions, or need a new form, click here to contact Br. Frank or call 414-427-4263.
Emonts exhibit going online
Frater Justin Krenke is spending part of the summer working with Fr. Wayne Jenkins, province archivist. One of the projects for which he is responsible is the cataloguing of items in the John Emonts Exhibit Area in the hall outside of the library at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology.
The catalogued items will be made accessible online at the Leo John Dehon Library website. The project is a joint effort between the province archives and the library.
Fr. Wayne writes that the “The Rev. John Emonts, SCJ Exhibit Area was established on April 20, 1982. Three exhibit cases contain artifacts from the Kingdom of Bamum, a pre-colonial West Africa state in what is now Cameroon. Fr. Emonts was a missionary from the SCJ Eastern (Germanica) Province in the German Kamerun from 1912-1916 and collected the royal, ceremonial artifacts . With the capture of Fumban, the seat of the Bamoun dynasty, by the British army under Colonel Gorges in December 1915, Fr. Emonts eventually moved to Spain from 1920-21 and finally emigrated to the United States in 1923. Before his arrival in the United States he wrote about his experiences and the artifacts in Ins Steppen-und-Berland Inner Kameruns, which was published by Xaveriusverlag in Aachen, Germany, in 1922. Artifacts were shipped to the US Province in 1931 from Cameroon by Rev. Joseph Bernard, SCJ.”
The material is expected to be available online by the end of August.
Update
Fr. Bob Naglich was released from the hospital over the weekend and is now back at the Congregational Home. Please continue to keep him in prayer.
SCJ reflects on military service, Lourdes and receiving the MSM
After four years of active duty as a chaplain (captain) with the US Army, including a tour in Afghanistan, Fr. Mark Mastin is hanging up his uniform. As he was packing his bags and getting ready to join the Dehon Formation Community in Chicago, he reflected on his military service, receiving the Army’s prestigious Meritorious Service Medal (MSM), and on accompanying wounded military personnel to Lourdes. About the visit to Lourdes he writes:
“From May 11-18, I went to Lourdes, France, as a chaplain for 200 wounded warriors. People from 35 countries came to this annual event that is sponsored and paid for by the Knights of Columbus and endorsed by the Archdiocese of the Military. I was honored to give a talk on Matthew’s passage about coming down the mountain after the transfiguration. I prayed that we all, after having been spiritually energized on Mount Lourdes, could sustain the feeling of God in our lives when we returned home. I led reflections each evening with our wounded warriors to help them reflect on how they felt that day.
“I was so moved by our wounded vets in Lourdes and their desire for hope. The volunteers were amazing. Towards the end of our time there we marched in formation up the mountainside with our vets to a war memorial. It was a moving moment in two ways. First, it reminded me of my Uncle Tom and his description of marching with his buddies through the streets of France after the Battle of the Bulge. Second and more importantly, the climb and march represented how our wounded vets struggle to climb out of so many personal challenges in their lives.”
About leaving active duty Fr. Mark adds that “it was a pleasure serving our soldiers and their families. I may not miss the 4:00 a.m. risings, but I will miss the people. They taught me more about love and living. They gave me more than I could ever have given them.”
Click here to read the rest of Fr. Mark’s reflection on the province website.
365 years of religious life!
The US Province celebrated the religious jubilees of 11 SCJs on Monday, July 6. Fr. Ed Kilianski, interim provincial superior, as well as one of the jubilarians (40 years of vows), was the main celebrant. Fr. Stephen Huffstetter, newly elected general councilor, was the homilist. The rest of the jubilarians included: Fr. Steve Wiese (60 years of profession); Br. Francis Snider (50); Fr. Gary Lantz and Fr. Robert Tucker (40); Fr. Zbigniew Morawiec (30); Fr. Christianus Hendrik (25), Fr. Joseph Thien Dinh, Br. Andy Gancarczyk, Fr. Quang Nguyen and Fr. Edward Zemlik (20).
Click here to view the online photo album.
Click here to read more about the jubilarians.
